I am now having some problems with having enough space to keep several tins of pencils at the ready when I am drawing.

I looked at the zip ups like the Trans and Global, but after reading a few reviews peopel said that the pencils next to the zips got the tips broken so didn't find them that good.

Have read some good things about the Coloured Pencil Easel which holds pencils like the Trans but it folds up and can stand free like a display and can hold 120 pencils......................can't get them here would have to look at Jerry's or AWS and order one to come to Oz.

I am after a system that I can store & take with me - did think of making a few rolls or my version of the Easel (I have made a free standing brush case before), but I wanted to find out from folk what you have had the most success with.....I am sure that many members of Drawspace are resourceful and have devised wonderful systems for themselves. Please, please share if you have any ideas to help.

I have a version of the cardboard-tubes-glued-to-a-board that I've seen recommended by several artists. It's not portable at all but it's convenient in a studio.

I was going through the aisles of Walmarts (everything store) the other day and spotted a silverware caddy, I think it had 6 to 8 pockets on it. I thought it would really be cool to hold my pencils, might need a couple of them. This one was made of wood and had a handle which would make it nice to move around the house, maybe you could find one that had a lid I don't know, maybe in a picnic section .

Nice ideas - sort of do-it-yourself lazy susan ideas.........not bad.

To make one to take with you, you could use one of the old metal work type lunch boxes (with the dome lids) and put dividers in it to stand your pencil in. Stick a couple of erasers to the top, keep one section for your other erasures and off you go. I might make me one someday when I get to it, I'll add that to the list.

i have a great way..hang on a sec..i must switch laptops, i am on hubbys and it doesnt take my camera..brb

ok, what we have here are my 5 cases, the three smaller ones each hold 120 pencils, two of them have colored pencils, one of them has watercolor pencils. the long ones hold my charcoal/sketch pencils, and my inkpens/markers.
the shorter ones stand up easel style, as well as the whole strip (like 6 strips per case) peels right off and stands up, they are all velcro..and they work so wonderful. they were like 30 something bucks a pop, but i got them on sale (discontinued item) for 15 bucks a piece.

Click to view attachmentClick to view attachmentClick to view attachmentClick to view attachment

Well... I don't have so many pencils as you guys, so this thing works best for me -->

Click to view attachment

And there's all I got. One Derwent Artist coloured pencil set, one Faber-Castell Art Grip coloured pencil set, all my graphite pencils and a set of poor quality CP left from... well, they're really old. Sounds like much but it isn't. They all fit in one 11.5 cm tin. (of course I did put some cotton at the bottom so that the pencils wouldn't break.)

My hair was standing on end until I read that part! In my caddy, the pencils are all point-up.

Even if the pencils are with their points up they still can break if there's nothing put inside the tin.

I use Mead pencil pouches. You can see them here: http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Pfl9uiY0qvg/ShKj...+PI+Cropped.jpg

http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_Pfl9uiY0qvg/ShKh...+PI+Cropped.jpg

I use the tin they came in. Have you considered a pencil wrap?

Ernest, I have even considered making my own wrap/roll - just trying to find out what is out there that I might not have seen and try and determine what would work best for me.

Kay I love those!! Are they still made or discontinued everywhere? Can you remember their name? I love the way they stand up..........just how do they stay in the case? Velcro?? Just thinking that I could try my hand if they aren't made anymore..................I am probably being too ambitious though.

these pics, kay invite me to your house to burglarize your pencil depot I have only 180 Cp and Watercolor pencils combined.

The cases in which they came, Sue are good enough for me and in this trip I took a set of 12 verithin in a cardboard case in my purse and they are fine with all the hassle of travel across China.I also have a manual plastic sharpener with me.

elena, when do you return? It sounds as though your trip is going just wonderfully, cant wait to see the pics.
those pencils are a culminaton of years of collecting, and birthday/christmas gifts etc..they were all thrown into a box that i rummaged thru when needed, i really hated that..then when i got serious about wanting to learn cp..i decided i could no longer 'rummage' and when i store them I always had to dig them out from the bottom of some pile before i could use them..so i got me some cases..a 'splurge' you can say..

I usually get wonderful art supplies as gifts from ppl

sue yes these cases are discontinued, i have searched high and low..the name is tran, and while they have another 'type' out this particular model has been discontinued, and I dont care for their new model
the longer ones are only 12 bucks at reg price at the ASW but those short ones, those are the 'bomb'

I still have so much to learn with the cp..but i do enjoy using them

they have elastic to hold each pencil, and each strip holds i think something like 20 or 30 pencils and the strip itself is velcroed to the inside of the case, you simply tear it off, fold it so they stand up and replace when complete,

tran cases

this is the 'newer' model and the only one i can find..it does not hold enough pencils and i cant stand the idea of that zip around..you know how zippers get stuck, break off, the seam rips apart etc..i prefer the velcro..also with the zipper seam standing up along the edge of the case it seems it would make it a pain in the butt for removal and replacement of pencils..

I've never ordered from here, so not sure how buying from Japan works.. but this is the best collection of cases I've seen online.. lots of other neat stuff there to.. someday I'm going to get brave and order.. hehe

http://www.jetpens.com/index.php/cPath/159

I was going to suggest what OLIVERANDJAZZ posted. I've seen those cases before and they look really nice and convenient. Maybe I need to invest in some of these myself. Right now I'm just using the tins that my Prismacolors came in.

I guess I'm the odd one out here. I have my pencils piled sideways into a cedar box and take them out as needed for a drawing. The other set are in the tin they came in as I don't have another suitable box.

To transport them, I simply take a variety of pencils that I think I'll need and pop them into a plastic ziplock bag. I don't toss things around so haven't had problems with pencils being broken. In fact there's more chance of that happening at home than on the go!

Yes, I have to scrabble through pencils to find the colour I want to start a drawing, but once I've found them, I keep those out til the drawing is finished. Mostly to help me remember what colours I'm using.

Kay, this is my last day in Shanghai and China.Tomorrow morning(Sunday) I am on my way to San Francisco and back home.The pics are: over 3 Gigs of memory cards with a canon camera including several videos + 128 MB with a nikon camera.
Plus folk art books, postcards and naive paintings which make a complete picture of Chinese articrafts.I took lots of pictures in Beijing art museum, Dunhuang folk art museum, Xi'an History museum(51 pics), Shanghai modern art museum.Art in China is everywhere from daily household utensils like painted porcelaine teapots and cups to wall decorations, pagoda rooftops, colorful traditional clothing, dinner sets, furniture, etc.We visited tea houses, medicine centres, silk and pearl factories.
A very rich culture with millennia of tradition and history.Can't wait to share my wealth of photos with you.Since my smallest batches of pics from sites are about 35 you might expect slideshows which are for fast display.But of course challenges will be the place where my best pics will be offered to use freely.

AWESOME!! I am looking forward to the challenges

Elena I am wondering how much excess baggage you'll have because with all of that I am sure I couldn't resist bringing things back with me! ha ha..........safe trip and I look fwd to seeing some of your pics when you get back.

Kay, I have looked high and low and cannot find your kind anywhere, so I have ordered a couple of those zip up Trans from Blicks, I figure that I'll put the stubbier pencils on the edge where the zips could be a problem .........could work that way . All I know is that its a pain to move several tins around looking for the right pencil, and when I had some in a muddle in a box I was so worried that I'd knock it off the table and break them all ...........or the dogs would. I figure that the cases would keep them from bouncing about if the critters did knock 'em down. Buster has the hardest nose I know of (he dead-legs me poking behind my knee when he thinks I am too late getting dinner). And I think at 13 senility is setting in and he is having his 2nd childhood because he now looks for mischief - no sock is safe from him!

Sue, I bought only books, music, and art supplies. The rest can be found anywhere in the world. For my cooking, clothing needs I find everything in California, in my town there are several oriental and Chinese markets.
We travel light. One carry-on per person , a handbag, my purse. I usually check in the carry on in which I put the used clothing; the books, art go in my handbag, my sketchbook is in my purse and ...bon voyage!
BTW, we leave Shanghai in one hour. I just stopped by to say ...ni hao(hi).

Ni Hoa Elena! I love that you travel light! There is an Aussie designer who designs clothes that don't wrinkle and are light weight and she uses basic pieces to plan around (very classic idea with a modern twist). She shows how you can have so many looks from so little pieces - her name is Liz Davenport and her site usually has some good ideas even if you don't buy her stuff.

Like you I tend to want to keep all my art stuff with me. I heard that a travel expert from the US who writes reviews reckons that he never checks his baggage onto an airline! He will pay to courier his bags from the door of the hotel to the door of his next destination - it apparantly is worth it with the number of bags that go missing on flights!!!